GULLANE, Scotland — One of the best golfers who never won a major tournament would love a crack
at one now.

Colin Montgomerie used to say it was harder than ever to win a major because each year it seemed
that Tiger Woods won two of them, Ernie Els, Phil Mickelson or Vijay Singh won another, and that
left only one for everyone else.

Those days are gone.

Over the past five years, 18 different players have won the 20 majors, none of them named Woods.
And the winner could be anybody. Darren Clarke won in his 54th major. Keegan Bradley won in his
first. Rory McIlroy won when he was 22. Els won when he was 42. Only McIlroy and Padraig Harrington
have won two majors in that span.

The next chance is the 142nd British Open, which begins today at Muirfield.

The search for the winner ordinarily starts with Woods, and with reason. He already has won four
times this year, but his major drought is at 16, stretched over five years, since his win at the
2008 U.S. Open.

Woods gets defensive when asked about his confidence, but there are no answers for why he can
recently win just about anywhere except in the majors.

“I think it’s just a shot here and there,” he said. “It’s making a key up-and-down here, or
getting a good bounce, capitalizing on an opportunity here and there.”

He said his health — he hasn’t played since finishing in a tie for 32nd at the U.S. Open because
of a left elbow strain — is not a concern even though he has played only nine holes each day
preparing for the British.

Among other top players, McIlroy has become something of an afterthought. He made a wholesale
equipment change at the start of the year and has seriously contended only once, at the Texas Open.
After missing the cut at the Irish Open three weeks ago, he said he felt “lost.”

Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, put aside the pain of another excruciating loss at the U.S. Open by
winning the Scottish Open on Sunday, his first win in Europe in 20 years. He believes he might have
his best chance to win a British Open.

Graeme McDowell has three wins this year, second only to Woods. But in his past eight
tournaments, McDowell has won three times and missed the cut the other five.

“When it’s been good, it’s been really good,” McDowell said.

If there is a trend in this year’s majors, it is the emergence of high-quality players whose
careers were elevated by winning a Grand Slam.

A year ago at the British Open, Adam Scott blew a four-shot lead with four holes to play and
lost to Els. But he rebounded to win the Masters and now brings a feeling of redemption to the
Open, even though he seemingly atoned for that collapse by winning his first major.

Not long after winning the Masters, Scott sent a text to friend Justin Rose that said “this was
our time.” Rose lived up to the prediction by winning the U.S. Open by two shots.

“If you’re not willing to experience the heartbreak of losing a major, then you can’t truly play
your best stuff and be free enough in the moment to get it done,” Rose said. “I was good with the
fact that you have to put yourself in that moment time and time again, and be willing to just keep
knocking down the door.”